The Amnesty International on Friday urged the Government of Pakistan to immediately halt the “continued detentions, deportations and widespread harassment of Afghan refugees”.
“Thousands of Afghan refugees are being used as political pawns to be returned to Taliban-ruled Afghanistan where their life and physical integrity could be at risk amidst an intensified crackdown on human rights and an ongoing humanitarian catastrophe,” the international body said in a news release.
“If the Pakistani government doesn’t halt the deportations immediately, it will be denying thousands of at-risk Afghans, especially women and girls, access to safety, education and livelihood.”
“No one should be subjected to mass forced deportations, and Pakistan would do well to remember its international legal obligations, including the principle of non-refoulement,” Livia Saccardi, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for Campaigns for South Asia quoted as saying.
The body cited the government’s order that says more than 170,000 Afghans, many of whom have lived in Pakistan for decades, have had to leave the country since 17 September as the government gave an ultimatum for all ‘unregistered foreign nationals’ to leave Pakistan.
It expressed concern over the detention of refugees by the Law Enforcement Agencies.
“Amnesty International has concerns about the complete lack of transparency, due process and accountability in the detentions and deportations over the last week. This has been exacerbated by increased incidents of harassment and hostility against Afghan refugees in Pakistan,” said the Amnesty while raising concern over the establishment of detention centers that it said “have not been constructed under a specified law and run parallel to the legal system.”
The Amnesty said it had verified that in at least seven detention centers, “no legal rights are extended to detainees such as the right to a lawyer or communication with family members.”
“Such centers are in violation of right to liberty and a fair trial. Also, no information is made public, making it hard for families to trace their loved ones.”
However, the Government of Pakistan has its own version who says that it only sending back to those who did not have any legal document to reside in the country.
